Post by Die Fledermaus on Apr 9, 2008 16:55:41 GMT -4
Civil War Ends!
>> April 9: 1865 : Robert E. Lee surrenders
At Appomattox, Virginia, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders
his 28,000 troops to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, effectively
ending the American Civil War. Forced to abandon the Confederate
capital of Richmond, blocked from joining the surviving Confederate
force in North Carolina, and harassed constantly by Union cavalry, Lee
had no other option.
In retreating from the Union army's Appomattox Campaign, the Army of
Northern Virginia had stumbled through the Virginia countryside
stripped of food and supplies. At one point, Union cavalry forces
under General Philip Sheridan had actually outrun Lee's army, blocking
their retreat and taking 6,000 prisoners at Sayler's Creek. Desertions
were mounting daily, and by April 8 the Confederates were surrounded
with no possibility of escape. On April 9, Lee sent a message to Grant
announcing his willingness to surrender. The two generals met in the
parlor of the Wilmer McLean home at one o'clock in the afternoon.
Lee and Grant, both holding the highest rank in their respective
armies, had known each other slightly during the Mexican War and
exchanged awkward personal inquiries. Characteristically, Grant
arrived in his muddy field uniform while Lee had turned out in full
dress attire, complete with sash and sword. Lee asked for the terms,
and Grant hurriedly wrote them out. All officers and men were to be
pardoned, and they would be sent home with their private
property--most important, the horses, which could be used for a late
spring planting. Officers would keep their side arms, and Lee's
starving men would be given Union rations.
Shushing a band that had begun to play in celebration, General Grant
told his officers, "The war is over. The Rebels are our countrymen
again." Although scattered resistance continued for several weeks, for
all practical purposes the Civil War had come to an end.
<<
>> April 9: 1865 : Robert E. Lee surrenders
At Appomattox, Virginia, Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders
his 28,000 troops to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, effectively
ending the American Civil War. Forced to abandon the Confederate
capital of Richmond, blocked from joining the surviving Confederate
force in North Carolina, and harassed constantly by Union cavalry, Lee
had no other option.
In retreating from the Union army's Appomattox Campaign, the Army of
Northern Virginia had stumbled through the Virginia countryside
stripped of food and supplies. At one point, Union cavalry forces
under General Philip Sheridan had actually outrun Lee's army, blocking
their retreat and taking 6,000 prisoners at Sayler's Creek. Desertions
were mounting daily, and by April 8 the Confederates were surrounded
with no possibility of escape. On April 9, Lee sent a message to Grant
announcing his willingness to surrender. The two generals met in the
parlor of the Wilmer McLean home at one o'clock in the afternoon.
Lee and Grant, both holding the highest rank in their respective
armies, had known each other slightly during the Mexican War and
exchanged awkward personal inquiries. Characteristically, Grant
arrived in his muddy field uniform while Lee had turned out in full
dress attire, complete with sash and sword. Lee asked for the terms,
and Grant hurriedly wrote them out. All officers and men were to be
pardoned, and they would be sent home with their private
property--most important, the horses, which could be used for a late
spring planting. Officers would keep their side arms, and Lee's
starving men would be given Union rations.
Shushing a band that had begun to play in celebration, General Grant
told his officers, "The war is over. The Rebels are our countrymen
again." Although scattered resistance continued for several weeks, for
all practical purposes the Civil War had come to an end.
<<
